Emergency Lighting

Emergency Lighting Wireless Solutions

Emergency lighting is a critical building safety function, governed by regulations that require fault detection, test logging, and minimum battery-powered run times. Emergency lighting systems are already well-established in the built environment, what’s changing is how they’re connected, maintained, and monitored. Wireless technology doesn’t alter the core purpose of emergency lighting; instead, it radically simplifies the infrastructure required to manage it.

Silicon Labs provides the low-power wireless SoCs and mesh networking platforms that make emergency luminaires, test switches, and smart signage to operate autonomously, run scheduled diagnostics, and report results in real time. Our integrated security features, OTA update support, and long-range radio performance make us the ideal connectivity partner for manufacturers ready to transition to wireless emergency lighting control.

Emergency Lighting Block Diagram

This architecture shows a fully wireless emergency lighting system using Bluetooth Mesh, Zigbee, or a proprietary protocol to connect luminaires, signage, and control nodes. Smoke or fire detection events can be routed through a wireless SoC to trigger a response, from illuminated exits to cloud-based alerting. Each node forms part of a resilient mesh, enabling communication even if one path fails.

What Wireless Enables in Emergency Lighting

Self-Testing & Remote Logging

The wireless subsystem enables the luminaire to initiate functional and duration tests, record results, and transmit logs wirelessly — eliminating manual walk-by inspections and supporting full EN/BS compliance.

Maintenance-Free Connectivity

Wireless mesh networking ensures reliable communication between luminaires, test switches, and gateways — even in large, concrete-heavy buildings — without the need for costly control wiring or repeated commissioning.

Secure Firmware Updates & Diagnostics

Over-the-air (OTA) updates and real-time fault alerts are securely delivered across the wireless mesh, allowing facilities teams to respond quickly and comply with safety regulations.

Battery Health Reporting

The wireless SoC collects and reports battery status (voltage, charge cycles, temperature) from the charging circuit, so facilities teams can predict failures before they occur.

Low Power Standby & Resilience

In battery-powered test switches or sensors, ultra-low-power wireless SoCs support multi-year operation on coin cells, ensuring always-on readiness for emergency testing without frequent servicing.

Why our Wireless Solutions Matter to Emergency Lighting Manufacturers

Silicon Labs helps manufacturers of emergency luminaires and control devices create connected lighting products without needing to be wireless experts. With proven wireless software stacks, reference designs, and field-tested hardware, we enable you to:

• Launch smart emergency lighting systems faster with certified modules and SDKs
• Comply with modern building automation and safety standards
• Integrate mesh networking directly into luminaires, eliminating the need for external control hardware
• Eliminate control wiring, reducing install costs in retrofits
• Upgrade products securely with OTA firmware updates
• Scale your platform for future IoT use cases (e.g., asset tracking, environmental sensing)